


Everyone You Know

by dividedheart



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Gen, Harassment, Implied/Referenced Underage, Sexual Harassment, Stalking
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-04-02
Updated: 2016-04-02
Packaged: 2018-05-30 16:31:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 16,944
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6431875
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dividedheart/pseuds/dividedheart
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When an unusual amount of attention is placed on Hinata, just how is he supposed to react...? And who can he go to, when he doesn't know who to trust...?</p><p>An AU in which Hinata is harassed and possibly stalked. A major WIP! More important information in the notes of the first chapter. </p><p>(Spoilers for Shiratorizawa match.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Fortitude

**Author's Note:**

> Fair warning: this work is going to be reworked and rewritten from the ground up. Characterization and plot is all going to change. Once I finished my other Haikyuu!! fanfiction, I will be working on this one, but I have much bigger projects going on at the moment.
> 
> ** Important: I've posted this WIP in hopes of gathering feedback from the community. 
> 
> For this reason, I request that if you read this, and are interested any more than "not at all", that you leave a comment. While kudos are appreciated, I really want to hear what you have to say! Any and all critique is welcome, even if it's just "the pacing is bad, you should skip or shorten Y and X"!
> 
> So I also ask that if you can, please share this with other people!
> 
> Thanks! Oh, and sorry for the jank formatting. I copied it from Evernote.

It starts a week after they beat Shiratorizawa.

 

The match is everywhere. It’s live on television when they play and the people crowded in the stadium cheer and woop and speak of it for days after. It’s recorded by the families of the players and their rivals, and the friends of friends and some grandparents, too. His mother weeps with joy when he returns home with a boisterous smile on his face and hugs him and all he hears is _so proud, my baby, I’m so proud of you_. 

 

Hinata watches the match just a single time, and laughs when he sees himself on screen, half crazed with the sight of himself flying through the air. It’s exciting and the tingly feeling that runs through his toes when he’s referred to as _the ace_ or _the winged spiker_ is a foreign pleasure. Hinata thinks on it and comes to the conclusion that the feeling must be pride.

 

There are rumors in every other breath, the name _Karasuno_ on everyone’s tongue, but the words that come along with it aren’t always ones of sweet praise and kind criticism, as the bad naturally comes after the good. There are people who are genuine and shout their congratulations to Hinata and there are those who leak his cell phone number and then those who use that information to send him texts that spell word for word just how much they dislike him. 

 

The first gorey picture sent to him is the last, because his mother takes his phone and brings it into a shop and brings it back with every other number blocked and every picture sent after that doesn’t seem to reach him. Kenma mourns his plight and Tsukishima laughs at him in person after he hears about it, but it’s not long after that he, too, gets a barrage of unwanted attention.

 

All of it is flattering, Hinata thinks, even the bad parts. It’s all unexpected and unfamiliar. It’s amazing, really, to be known as anyone other than himself, someone plain and simple in the most basic of ways, stupid even, and he feels special in a weird way that he can’t place. It’s odd to have people he doesn’t know call out to him, but he replies in kind whenever he can, waving to a pair of tittering schoolgirls on his way to the supermarket and shaking hands with an older gentleman in a business suit. Hinata receives the lions’ share of attention, so he takes great joy in mocking his friends when it reaches them. 

 

Kageyama deals with confessions and proclamations of love and admiration every day at lunch and even during breaks in between classes, one case which leads to a hysterical Hinata and an embarrassed Kageyama. Asahi is swarmed by women and he can’t seem to handle it because he accepts the third girl who comes to him, an old friend of his – Nishinoya laughs when he hears the news and tells Asahi not to accidentally crush her when they hug at the end of their date. _Date_?! He squeaks, giving Tanaka full reason to go on a spiel about how to treat women.

 

Hinata isn’t the only one to receive attention. He’s not Kageyama or Asahi or even Daichi, all with strong, attractive features and height to accompany them, so he doesn't get girls, cute and flirty, asking to date him. He’s small and if he’s not in the air he’s frail, just a kid that most people mistake to be a middle schooler. Even though he’s labeled as the star-studded cast member within their club, that part of life doesn’t go away, because he’s still only 5’4 with soft curves and a baby face to match.

 

Hinata isn’t confessed to daily, nor is he labeled as _hot_ , _cool_ or _sexy_ like some of his team members – like Tanaka, who gets a girlfriend within the week, or Asahi, who can barely move without being flocked by women, or Nishinoya, who seems closer to 6’4 than 5’2 when surrounded by admirers. None of it compares to what Hinata gets, though it’s not in the first week, no; not the second, or even the third.

 

Someone throws a stone into his life, and the ripples turn to waves and the waves into a typhoon. There’s little but a tremble in the beginning. Hinata catches sight of it two weeks after their match, months before the Nationals.

 

++ ++

 

Hinata went to school as normal and worked hard, determined to keep his grades up despite all the training he was putting into volleyball. He spoke to his friends and waved at people who called out to him, but had a slow, boring sort of day all the same. It wasn’t any surprise that by the end of their practice after classes, night had already fallen and rain had begun to spill onto the ground. Naturally, he’d gone to his locker to fetch his umbrella.

 

He’d found it then.

 

The envelope was slipped into the crack in his locker – when he unlocked it he was careless, and flailed to catch the thing as it floated free and landed between his feet. He was belatedly puzzled and took his time staring down at the thing, wondering how it had gotten there. After picking it up and seeing his name scrawled in a fancy type across the front, though, he’d made the connection. _Oh,_ he’d thought, _it’s a letter for me._

 

Hinata was never one to brood, however, so he’d shoved it into the front pocket of his bag and had grabbed his umbrella and run outside to hop on his bike and leave, thoughts turning to what was for dinner and whether or not there’d be a pop quiz the next day.

 

It’s another full day at school before he remembers the letter while he’s changing out of his sweat-soaked uniform and talking to Kageyama. He stops changing and talking at the same time, to the chagrin of Kageyama, who immediately pokes at his naked side and asks him what’s wrong.

 

Hinata finishes changing and pushes back his bangs back with a sigh, glancing at his bag, strewn across the bench. “I got a letter in my locker yesterday,” He explains, pointing. “But I haven’t opened it yet. I just remembered it now,” Kageyama looks from him to his bag, and stifles a snort. 

 

“Really? Wow. Someone must be out of their mind,” Kageyama sounds amused, and Hinata doesn’t understand.

 

“Huh? To send me a letter? Um, well, it’s not that uncommon for students to communicate that way, but usually they’d just send a text…” Hinata picks up his bag and unzips the pocket to fish around for the letter. He pulls it out and shows it to Kageyama, who stares at it with clear disbelief. 

 

“Seriously? Is this real?” Kageyama snatches the letter from Hinata, but he still doesn’t understand. “My god. This is like… not only is it weird for someone to give _you_ of all people a letter…” He pauses. “It’s a really expensive envelope,” He pinches and strokes a corner of the paper, and Hinata peers at it, realizing that it’s woven with a sort of complex looking pattern. It resembles an invitation rather than a letter, and Hinata feels excited about it for the first time.

 

“Oooh! Let me feel!” He grabs it back and ignores the grumble from Kageyama, fingering the paper. It’s kind of velvety. “Hmm. What do you think is inside?” He asks.

 

“Er. I thought it was gonna be a love letter or something, but it kind of looks like an invitation to something. It’s definitely not an envelope you’d mail something in, so I guess it makes sense that they shoved it in your locker,” He scratches at his cheek. Hinata wonders if he’s jealous as he picks at the seal, trying to open it without ripping it. “By the way, how’d they get it in there?” 

 

“Hmm?” Hinata glances up at him distractedly as he fiddles with the opening. “What do you mean? They shoved it in the crack,” He says. 

 

“Oh. Was it sticking out?”

 

“No?” Hinata stops picking and gives Kageyama a look. “Why are you so worried about that? I just wanna see what’s inside now!” 

 

“Just because… it looks like it’s too thick to shove in between a closed locker door,” He mumbles, and Hinata ignores him and instead focuses his effort on peeling back the opening. He can’t do it, though, because he has short nails and blunt fingers. He begins to whine.

 

“Give it here, stupid,” Kageyama barks, snatching it away again. His skilled, deft fingers work it open in seconds without tearing the material, and Hinata croons. Unfortunately, he keeps going, pulling the contents out with a grumble. Hinata jumps at him. 

 

“What are you doing?! That’s mine, give it here!” Kageyama holds it above Hinata’s head, and since the paper is obviously prone to ripping, the spiker doesn’t dare to jump up to try and take it back by force. 

 

“It’s just a letter, after all,” Kageyama laughs and skims over the contents, wondering what kind of dirt he could get on Hinata. He stops short, and pushes the whining Hinata away with a bit too much force. 

 

Hinata stumbles on his feet, an indignant shout coming to his tongue before recognizing the disgust on his teammate's face. Kageyama looks like he’d just swallowed something bitter, judging by his expression.

 

Hinata feels his gut clench as anxiety tears its way up into his throat. He doesn’t whine anymore and instead waits for Kageyama to finish reading it, hands twisting together nervously. His eyes flit back and forth over the page; Hinata can see the cogs turning in his head as he hunches over the writing.

 

“This… this is some kind of prank,” Kageyama murmurs, voice hoarse. “This is just a dumb fucking prank to mess with you,” He directs his words to Hinata, this time. “Sorry, but it’s going in the trash.”

 

“What?!” Hinata finally scrambles to action, ripping it free from the surprised Kageyama’s hands in a blur. 

 

“Stop! Fucking idiot, I’m serious!” Hinata turns to the page with a scowl, wondering what could possibly be so terrible about it. Kageyama keeps on shouting at him. “I told you no!” 

 

Hinata is shocked by the violent energy radiating off of him, and knows to dodge when the other boy stumbles forward in a wild attempt to snag the letter back. Hinata dances away, jumping up on the bench and yelping when Kageyama grabs him around his waist.

 

“Stop! I’m serious, Hinata. Stop!” The emotion in the setter’s voice would still him any other day, but right now, Hinata is dying of curiosity and is too stubborn to just _stop_. 

 

It’s his, after all. The evidence is right on the envelope where his name is scrawled. After seeing Kageyama’s reaction, there’s no way he can ignore it, so he shoves the other boy off of him and scrambles away into the corner of the room, turning his eyes to the letter and reading it as quick as he can. Comprehension comes slowly, though, and he looks from Kageyama to the letter and back again.

 

“Is this real?” He asks, flapping the paper around. “What is this? It doesn’t make sense!”

 

Kageyama throws himself down in front of Hinata, sitting cross-legged. He doesn’t meet the spiker’s eyes, and then he groans loudly, hands coming up to rub across his face. Hinata takes that as a sign that he won’t be interrupted, and struggles to swallow the words in front of him, reading slowly this time.

 

_To Hinata,_

_This year sure has passed in a blur. You’ve grown up so much since I first saw your match in the Spring Tournament. I’m sure that all of your friends and your family are just as proud of you as I am._

_How well you’ve done hasn’t surprised me at all. I knew since the second I laid eyes on you that you were something special. You radiate talent and you shine like the sun. I just hope you know that. Keep working hard, and your efforts will continue to be rewarded._

_You don’t know about my feelings, but I think it’s time that we discuss our relationship. I don’t think I will tell you who I am, yet, but I know you love me the same way I love you. I’ve seen it in your eyes when you’ve looked at me before, in your passing glances. Once I tell you, I’m sure you’ll realize it too, even if it’s hard to understand now._

_I really am looking forward to it. Your smile lights up my life, and your voice is like liquid sugar. I can’t wait for you to sing for me. I think this is the best thing for us. A week or two after you receive this and have time to prepare yourself will do._

_I can’t wait to see you again._

_Love,  
Your faithful, forever admirer_

Where a signature might typically be scrawled there is nothing but blank, empty space, leaving the sender a mystery. The letter obviously isn’t written by a peer, because the writing is weirdly formal and overly complicated. Hinata bites his lower lip and trembles before bursting with embarrassment. 

 

“This is so stupid!” He shouts, crumpling up the paper with an undignified growl. “What a sick joke! Who would write something like this?! Kageyama, what do you know about this?” He shoves the ball of paper under Kageyama’s nose. 

 

“Nothing!” Kageyama leaps to his feet. “I don’t know shit, okay?! All I know is that if this is real, it’s _serious_. It doesn’t sit well with me either way,” Kageyama takes the scrunched up wad of paper being waved under his nose and smooths it out, looking over the words again. Hinata doesn’t even try to keep him from rereading it all; Kageyama’s seen them, and obviously has a better understanding of them than Hinata does.

 

“This’s not funny,” Hinata mumbles to himself, tapping his foot against the tiled floor. He’s suddenly so exhausted, and wishes terribly that Sugawara or Daichi was around. They would know what to do. “What do I do?”

 

“Tell the captain,” Kageyama glances up from the paper and points to a certain passage. “Look. It says here that he’ll… well, it doesn’t say so exactly, but he implies he’s gonna come see you. When did you get this?”

 

“Yesterday,” Hinata immediately answers. 

 

“Do you… do you check your locker every day?” Kageyama asks, slow and steady.

 

“I…” Hinata melts. “No. I don’t. I… I last checked it before we left to go to the tournament. Oh my god, oh my god, Kageyama—“

 

“Don’t freak out, idiot!”

 

“Oh my god! What the heck do I do?! I don’t kno—”

 

“Stop! Calm down. We don’t know if it’s a joke or a threat. You’re showing this to the captain tomorrow,” Kageyama says, delicately folding it into a neat square. “And don’t burn it or throw it away or something stupid. It’s… really, it’s probably a joke… but you should be careful, I guess,” He’s so unsure that it scares Hinata. This is Kageyama, who is an unshakeable brick wall nine times out of ten, and even he is taking it seriously.

 

“But it’s so… it’s so _creepy_ ,” Hinata murmurs, taking back the paper with a shiver. His face flushes. “Urgh! Can you please keep this between us until I tell the captain?!” 

 

“What?” Kageyama squints at him. “Are you gonna bail or something? You can’t just leave it alone—”

 

“I know!” Hinata shouts. “I know. Just… it’s embarrassing, so can you please…?”

 

The setter levels his gaze with the spiker, and then nods once, firm and resolute. “Okay. But if you ignore it, then I’ll go ahead and tell him myself. It’s super weird, after all,” He says.

 

“Okay,” Hinata nods. “Agreed.”

 

Later that night in the dark of his room, Hinata takes the paper and flattens it out against his desk. He reads the words over and over again, trying to decide if he’s crazy or if it really does hold some hidden threat. He ends up shoving it back into the envelope and tosses it into the bottom of his bag. He thinks to burn it, but stops, thinking of Kageyama. He decides it is a prank and that it is harmless – the words are too laughably romantic to take seriously, after all, and Hinata is Hinata. He is loud and reckless and bright, full of energy, but he knows he isn’t an attractive person, and that the strongest feeling he’s ever inspired in anyone is annoyance.

 

He doesn’t keep to his promise.

 

Kageyama doesn’t keep to his threat, either. Hinata can’t muster up the will or the courage to tell his captain or anyone else about the letter the next day, or the next, or the next after that. Kageyama gives him a look, here and there, and sends him vague texts, but neither of them makes a move, and a week passes in a blur.

 

It’s Friday, and Hinata goes to school with his heart in his throat. Today would be the day he’d get a second letter, or meet the person faming themselves in the first, so anxiety twists its mean grip around his chest for the entirety of the afternoon, though Hinata convinces himself it’s nervousness due to the upcoming match. 

 

Lunch washes away his worry when he shares some jokes with his friends and eats a specially prepared lunch from his mom. The day is a good one, and he gets some more pats on the back from his fellow students, and even gets a smile from Kiyoko before the match at the end of the day.

 

Their practice matches are usually tough, as more and more schools step up and offer themselves. People come to watch – something that’s normal by now, considering their new-found fame. Hinata’s anxiety is tripled when he sees the seats in the loft filled, a new, perplexing sight that sends his heart racing and his stomach fluttering. 

 

It’s a match against a school that isn’t terribly far from theirs, and the team mostly consists of third-years with big, doofy smiles on their faces. They don’t seem to take it too seriously, and they aren’t anything special; they don’t have any flashy moves, even though their serves and receives are solid enough to make Daichi seem like an average player in their midst. 

 

Ennoshita gets some good time on the court, too, and scores them a couple points. He tosses to Hinata, and the spiker slams the ball so hard on the other side of the net that he thinks he actually gets a little winded from both excitement and adrenaline. 

 

Hinata and he high-five so hard that their hands sting after, and at the end of the match, Ennoshita picks him up and hugs him, causing everyone to burst out laughing at the ridiculous sight. Overall, it’s a good match. Hinata is glad to have established a connection to another setter, something which broadens their options significantly during real matches. Ukai tells them that they’d learned a lot, but Hinata thinks that much was obvious.

 

By the end of it his feet ache and his muscles are sore, but he feels as psyched as always and can’t stop himself from feeling happy. His anxieties have amounted to nothing; no one strange has approached him during the day, their match was a complete success, and no more weird letters have popped up, either. He goes to his locker, since he’s made checking it a habit. Besides, he wants the bottle of water he’d left inside. 

 

He stifles a cry of bewilderment when he pops open the lock and is greeted by a bundle of roses. There’s something inside the bundle, but the smell and the sight overwhelm him for a second, and all he can do is stare, forgetting the reason he’d stopped by his locker in the first place.

 

He pushes past the flowers to grab the card located at their centre and withdraws with a yelp when a sharp thorn pricks his thumb. As he sucks on the wound he picks through the flowers with much more care, plucking the card out with trembling fingers.

 

This time there’s no envelope. It’s just a simple little lamented card that you’d buy at a flower shop, packaged with the roses themselves. It’s written in blue pen this time, not ink, and even in his panic Hinata can guess that it’s been written by an entirely different person this time around. The dark hallways and shoddy lighting make reading it difficult, but the message is sweet and short and to the point. 

 

_To my sweet Shouyou,_  
I had such a great time today. I can’t wait for us to bond again sometime soon!  
Love,  
Your faithful, forever admirer, 

 

His heart seems to stop and he forgets to breathe for a second. He looks around the dimly lit hallway where empty cubbies and lonely lockers surround him and feels an oppressive sort of panic thunder through his chest. He’s all alone, and someone broke into his locker to leave him flowers. 

 

His mind blanks out, and he leaves the fragrant, fresh pile of roses where he found them, slamming his locker shut with a rattle and a bang. His breathing comes quick and his hands shake as he pulls out his phone and scrambles to punch in Kageyama’s number, but he stops short.

 

 _Kageyama_. 

 

His eyes open wide and he suddenly wants to laugh at himself for his childish foolishness. No wonder. It all made sense if Kageyama was the one to pull this prank. Hinata’s shoulders shake as he giggles, face going hot as embarrassment flashes through him. The first letter was Kageyama’s, too; it makes sense, especially if he considered the fact that the setter had threatened to tell Daichi and urged his panic on further and had done nothing to actually help.

 

So Hinata laughs. He runs outside and hops on his bike and remembers halfway home that he’d forgotten to put the lock back on his locker and had thrown the card back onto the floor. He laughs so hard and for so long that his grip on his bike handle bar goes sweaty and numb while his throat dries out.

 

He gets home and pulls the letter out. He examines it and then opens up his notebook and compares something Kageyama had scribbled out for him with the fancy, elegant writing, and comes to the conclusion that they are not the same. He leaves the letter where it is and goes to sleep with tears in his eyes.

 

No one finds either the letter left on his desk or the roses in his locker. When he returns to school the next day, his locker is clean, and the only signs that flowers had been there just yesterday is a smudge of blood from the wound Hinata had gotten when he’d cut himself on a sharp thorn.

 

He tells the vice-captain about it all during lunch.

 

The third years’ wing has always intimidated Hinata to some degree. Everyone is tall, miles high above him physically and mentally, and he knows absolutely no one except for his few club members. He finds Sugawara Koushi with some effort, and pulls him away from his lunch to confess over a stupid prank that has his stomach tied in knots. He’d decided on telling Suga and no one else, simply because Daichi was too scary and too serious, while Sugawara was a breath of fresh air, one that Hinata desperately needed.

 

He stumbles over his words as he explains, fidgeting with his hair and the sleeves of his uniform the entire time. Hinata is so intensely uncomfortable that he considers bailing on the entire thing and telling Sugawara to just return to his lunch when he looks up and spots the deathly serious look on his vice captain’s face. When he stops talking, Sugawara urges him on, and he finishes his story by saying that it was probably Kageyama after all.

 

“Can I see the letter, Hinata?” Sugawara asks, voice light, gentle, and so terribly concerned that Hinata’s stomach hurts all over again. He feels guilt surge through him as he remembers that he left it at home.

 

“Ergh… I… I was looking over it last night, so I… left it at home. I’m so sorry,” He is the embodiment of the word awkward, fidgeting and looking at everything but Sugawara, face red. “I’m so stupid. I totally forgot. I didn’t think I’d end up telling anyone, so—”

 

“It’s no problem,” Sugawara places a steady hand on Hinata’s shoulder, and just for a moment, he feels reassured. It disappears when the hollow realization that his mother might see it rushes in to take its place. “Just bring it to me tomorrow. But I don’t _have_ to see it to believe you— I was just curious about the exact details,” He says, soothing.

 

“This is so silly,” Hinata pushes the back of his hand against his mouth, embarrassed. “So stupid. I’m so dumb. I don’t know what I expected when I told you, I just… I just wanted to tell someone else, I guess. Kageyama’s no help,” He murmurs, voice muffled.

 

“Kageyama doesn’t seem like the type to pull such a…” Sugawara seems to struggle for a second, face twisting in thought. “…such a well-thought out prank. I’m glad you came to talk to me about it. Even if it is another high-school student, they can’t just break into your locker like that. I can help you request a new lock,” Sugawara beams at him, encouraging, and Hinata latches onto that brightness.

 

“Thank you,” He heaves a sigh, feeling like a weight has been lifted off his chest, now that he’s told someone else about it. Sugawara is smart, reliable, trustworthy and mature. If anyone knew what to do, Sugawara Koushi did. “I really appreciate it…”

 

“It’s no problem. Ah, but, Hinata…” Sugawara’s smile slips, and he looks serious again. “Please don’t forget to bring that letter tomorrow. I believe you, and I think we need to take care of this as soon as we can, but adults aren’t always so trusting. They might think we’re pulling a prank on _them_ if we can’t show them proof,” He explains.

 

“Oh! Okay. Of course! I won’t forget it, I promise,” Hinata bounces up and down on his feet and Sugawara breaks the tension in the air with a laugh and ruffles his hair.

 

“Go eat your lunch and relax. We’ll take care of all of this tomorrow, so no worrying, okay?”

 

“Yes! Sorry for the trouble!” Hinata leaves with a bow and a hurried thanks, running off to find Kageyama and tell him about what they’d discussed.

 

He finds Kageyama by the vending machine, sucking a juice box dry, an angry look plastered on his face. When Hinata calls out to him, his expression melts into one far gentler, turning to the orange-haired spiker with an uneasy grunt.

 

“What’s up?” He asks.

 

“I told Suga,” Hinata beams, leaning back on his heels. “Soooo… you can stop giving me ugly looks during practice and sending me rude texts. And if _you_ sent me those as a prank,” Hinata leans forward, squinting. "Then you can give it up right now. Breaking into my locker and leaving flowers is lame, anyway. And I cut myself!” Hinata waves his bandaged thumb in front of Kageyama’s face, and the other boy startles.

 

“What? _Flowers_? Stupid, that’s stupid,” Hinata smiles when he sees him grow flustered, thinking he’s finally found his mysterious admirer – or in reality, his prankster. “I don’t know the code to your locker and I can’t break into shit, anyway. When’d this happen? Why didn’t you tell me?”

 

“Yesterday,” He sticks out his tongue, still trying to be light-hearted, even though Kageyama’s intense worry is disconcerting. “There was a huge bundle of roses in my locker. There were thorns and everything. And this morning it was all gone. The little note was gone, too,” He explains.

 

“What?” Kageyama grabs Hinata by his wrist, tugging him closer. Hinata makes a hurt noise as Kageyama forcefully turns his hand this way and that, examining his bandage. “Are you fucking with me?” He asks, finally looking Hinata in the eyes. “What did the note say?”

 

All of the warmth seeps out of Hinata in that moment. There’s no mischievous twinkle to his friend’s eyes, and his voice has grown hoarse, scratchy, almost panicked. Sugawara had said that Kageyama wasn’t the type to pull a prank, but Hinata’s hopes hadn’t been dissuaded, not until now. Not even when he’d compared the writing last night had he really given up on the idea that it was all a prank.

 

“It… they said they’d enjoyed themselves… and hoped to see me again,” He sucks in a sharp breath, holding it, looking for laughter in Kageyama’s face.

 

“Hinata?” He asks, features softening. “Seriously…? Hinata… are you okay? This is creeping me out. Did someone really—”

 

“Don’t. Don’t look at me like that,” He squirms free from Kageyama’s grip, suddenly intensely uncomfortable. “I have to go home. Right now. I have to _go_ ,” He exhales in a rush. “I. I have to leave. I left that letter on my desk. I thought you sent it. I checked the writing with yours, I compared it, it’s not the same,” Hinata feels sick to his stomach all of a sudden.

 

“Of course it’s not the same,” Kageyama says it like it’s obvious, but his voice is too soft, too gentle, and Hinata wants to puke because someone he doesn’t know broke into his locker last night to give him flowers and a message that spelled out word for word that they’d interacted, but Hinata doesn’t know _who_ it is. He feels _sick_.

 

“This is too weird,” He says, shaking his head. “This is just too much. Please tell me you sent it. Did someone else put you up to it? Was it Tanaka, or Nishinoya, or… who? Are you helping someone else pull a prank on me? It’s not funny anymore. It never was. Just tell me the truth,” Hinata begs, desperate.

 

“I am not pulling a prank on you!” Kageyama shouts, turning heads. He leans closer after that, and whispers viciously, reaching out and taking his wrist again. “I’m serious. Why the fuck would I put so much effort into messing with you like this?”

 

“I don’t know,” Hinata admits, reluctant. Kageyama’s anger is pushing out Hinata’s anxiety. He looks down at Kageyama’s hand, where it holds his wrist, almost gentle. “I really don’t know, but it’s… it’s still possible it’s just a joke, right?” He wants to hope.

 

“Well, yeah,” His friend looks thoughtful, and finally takes a step back. Hinata scowls and rubs his hands together, struggling not to scrub at his skin, the places where Kageyama had touched feeling warm. “I mean, I know I’m not pranking you. But that doesn’t mean that someone else isn’t,” He sighs, seemingly unaware of Hinata’s quiet distress.

 

“Yeah. Um… yeah. I… think I really am gonna go home now, though,” Hinata sighs, defeated. “There’s no way I can focus on class right now…”

 

“What about practice?” Kageyama immediately snaps. “You’re just going to skip that, too? Come on. Don’t let this shit take over your life. It’s just a letter,” He says, too forcefully.

 

“Just a letter,” Hinata nods. “Just some flowers,” He shakes his head. “You’re right. I’ll stay. I can’t miss practice… that’s probably what this is about!” Hinata exclaims, trembling with the thought. “Ooh! I know! I get it now! Someone – maybe some of our opponents, upcoming, or old ones, maybe they did it?! Just to throw me off my game!”

 

“Oh!” Kageyama seems to like that idea. “Yeah! That actually makes sense. Huh. Yeah. I bet that’s it,” He says, but Hinata can tell that he isn’t truly convinced. It’s written all over his face. “It might have even been from the guys we practiced with last night. They looked kind of shifty,” He says, even though they were more goofy than sinister.

 

They end their conversation there. Hinata doesn’t eat lunch that day, but instead stuffs his face later, on his way home. His anxiety over the strange message hasn’t been quelled, but when he gets home and hurries up to his room, he feels a little hopeful. With the letter, he can show Sugawara evidence, and can convince any unbelieving teachers. He can get help.

 

But the letter is no longer on his desk.

 

Hinata blanches. He searches his room frantically, upends his school bag onto his bed, and even pulls out each and every scrap of paper in his wastebasket. He thunders down the stairs when his search in his room reveals nothing and bangs into the kitchen, startling his mother in the process.

 

“Mom!” He struggles to catch his breath. “Mom! Did you clean my room today?! There was an important, er, uh, an important test thing for tomorrow on my desk! Did you throw it out?”

 

“Oh, honey. No, I didn’t. I wish I could help you find it, but I didn’t touch anything on your desk,” She answers, barely glancing up from the pepper steak she’s mixing up on the stove. “Ah. But Natsu might have rumbled on through and touched it,” She says, feigning interest. “Take care of your things better next time!”

 

Hinata barely hears her as he runs through the house to find his baby sister. He throws open her door with a bang and a shout, looking around for her, spotting her at her table, scribbling out some useless drawing.

 

“Natsu!” Her head shoots up when she hears her name. “Did you take a letter from my desk?!” He stutters, trying not to sound too panicked.

 

“What?” She asks, chewing on the end of her crayon, attempting to see interested.

 

“The paper! It was um, an expensive paper. And it had a bunch of, uh, fancy text on it,” He tries to explain it without giving anything away.

 

“Oooh, that thing? The special origami paper?” She asks, seeming more interested now. “I took it,” She beams at him.

 

“Why?!” Hinata wants to shake her. “What did you do with it? It wasn’t origami paper!”

 

“I used it as a painter’s canvas!” She would be so cute if he didn’t want to strangle her just then. “Look! It’s right there,” She points over to her desk, to a chopped up little circle. Hinata stumbles closer in disbelief to inspect it, and Natsu goes back to drawing with a tittering sigh.

 

He peers at the mess she’d made of the letter. She had cut the edges off to make it round, and had splotched paint in huge gobs across the surface of the entire thing. She really had used it to hold her paint.

 

Hinata continues to stare, speechless, trying to decide if he could somehow peel the dried paint off to reveal the message underneath; but it’s not only cut, it’s ripped, and there’s even blotches of black paint on it, too.

 

“Natsu,” He breathes, resigned. “Don’t ever touch stuff in my room again,” He puts on his scary older brother face and she just stares at him blankly, clearly bored and unthreatened.

 

“Don’t what?” She asks, blinking owlishly at him, feigning innocence.

 

“Don’t touch my shit!” His yells makes her jump. He’s too angry to care, but that makes her relent, and she finally seems to focus in on him and pay attention.

 

“Geez, I won’t, as long as you stop making weird faces!” She gives him a look, and then shakes her head sadly. “Wasn’t it origami paper?” She asks, almost apologetically.

 

“No. No, it wasn’t,” He murmurs, suddenly unable to stand looking at her and the mess that had been made of his letter. It’s all he can do to walk out of her room without knocking something over in retaliation, but he doesn’t have enough energy for that anymore.

 

“Sorry!” She shouts at his retreating back. This time, he’s the one to ignore her.

 

He wishes things could end with a simple apology, but they can’t. What on earth is he going to tell Suga tomorrow?


	2. Reflection Call

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The suspicion does not stop.

Hinata goes to school the next day with his head hung low.

 

He finds Sugawara staring at him through the entirety of their morning practice and he can hardly stand it. The vice-captain is concerned, nothing more, nothing less, but Hinata’s anxiety makes him raise his hackles, and he can’t focus in on the game they’re playing at all. Every light-hearted comment is a jab, and he returns them in kind. He even snaps back hard enough at Tsukishima that he shuts up, which is a miracle unto itself.

 

When they’re supposed to pack up and get ready for class, he finds his feet leading him to where Sugawara stands with Daichi. He stops in front of the two third-years and opens and closes his mouth stupidly.

 

“Sugawara… um… outside?” He asks, tentative, shy. Daichi gives him a weird look, but it isn’t an angry one, and Sugawara pats his arm and then walks out of the gym with Hinata alone.

 

“Hinata,” He begins, and the first year feels guilt settle in his stomach like a bad meal. “How are you? You’ve been nervous the whole practice. Did you forget the letter?” His tone is gentle, and he is anything but berating, but his words still make Hinata tense up. Sugawara is too perceptive for his own good.

 

“I…” He swallows, finding speech difficult. “I didn’t forget it. But my sister…” He gesticulates wildly, struggling to get it out. Sugawara listens to him patiently. “My sister destroyed it! She thought it was origami paper and took it and then used it as a _paint_ tray,” He groans, frustrated all over again. “This sounds like a excuse, but it’s not,” Hinata’s shoulders slump, and he buries his face in his hands.

 

“That’s okay,” Sugawara says eventually, once he’s sure Hinata has gotten all of his nervous energy out of his system. “That’s fine. We can still request a new lock for you. I’m sure they’ll understand if you tell them that it’s broken,” He says.

 

“But it’s not,” Hinata points out, perplexed.

 

“Oh, yes, it is,” Sugawara grins mischievously and winks. “Trust me. We can make this work. They won’t check, they’ll just give a new lock to you. Less paperwork, which means they have significantly less reason to reject you. Quick fix. No complaining. You know?” He smiles. “Besides, I have a feeling that you’re not ready to discuss the letter with anyone yet. I know how you feel about it,” Sugawara’s hand comes to pat Hinata on the back. “Don’t worry. We’ll take care of this.”

 

Hinata nods and relents and then wants to cry because he realizes that without the letter, the only person who understands the severity of the contents is Kageyama. Without it, there’s little he can do to convince Sugawara that it isn’t just _creepy_ , it’s kind of scary, too; but Hinata is obedient, so he does as he’s told.

 

At lunch he finds Sugawara in his classroom and they head to the main office to request a new lock. Sugawara is a good, trustworthy student, and the facility members all croon at him and nod their heads compliantly when he explains the situation to them.

 

Hinata has an administrator follow him to his locker and he watches as the old lock is taken away and a new one is refitted. Sugawara oversees the whole process, and seems pretty satisfied with the result. The new code as well as the key is handed to Hinata, and in an instant, the whole ordeal is over.

 

Hinata still can’t shake the uneasiness riding on his back, but he tries his best. There’s no way for anyone to creep into his stuff and leave him unwanted words anymore, so he tries to find comfort in that. The key and the combination go under his mattress later that night, too, where he knows they won’t be easily found, not even by Natsu.

 

Time passes by without incident, day by day. Hinata still goes to his locker at the end of classes after that, checking the lock, the insides, and whether or not anything has changed since the refitting. Nothing does. He feels safe again, and he performs at his usual level in classes and in practice, and the little letter and the flowers seem less and less important with every day that goes by without incident. Sugawara was right. The new lock gives him peace of mind.

 

Then a Saturday comes by where he has plans with his friends. Real, actual plans, where Hinata has to get up early and pick out his clothes carefully. Everyone but the third years tag along – Ennoshita, too, since he’s sick in bed – and they head into the city to go shopping and have fun.

 

Hinata wakes up that morning and feels so much excitement that he’s like to burst. His alarm clock buzzes incessantly and he thinks to sing along with it, but instead switches it off and springs free from his sheets and bounces over to his bathroom to shower and get ready.

 

He meets up with Kageyama and Tsukishima at a bus stop nearby his house – he has to bike there, and so he brings a lock and a screw so he can attach his bicycle to a cyclist rack. Tsukishima rolls his eyes as he fiddles with the thing and Kageyama eventually clicks his tongue and does it for him.

 

Hinata is in such a good mood that he almost hugs him, but settles for patting his back and shouting his thanks. Tsukishima says he’s obnoxious and that he mourns Kageyama and what will become of them today, but the twist to his lips betrays his amusement.

 

Hinata just settles with a quick reminder that he’d agreed to come with them today, and he flatlines and says it’s because he wants to buy a new set of headphones down in the specialty store at the mall. Neither Kageyama nor Hinata buy it, and they tease him mercilessly until the bus arrives.

 

They ride to Tanaka’s house where they find Nishinoya and Saeko loudly gossiping about Kiyoko. Tanaka seems annoyed, unexpectedly, but Hinata soon discovers that it’s because Saeko actually knows Kiyoko. Yamaguchi and the rest of their friends arrive in the next hour, and by then the sun is beginning to grow hot. It’s a typical early morning, but it feels special and exciting to Hinata, and he thinks Kageyama is actually really happy too, judging by the awkward half-smile lingering on his lips.

 

They pile into Saeko’s van and throw their thanks her way but she waves them off with a smile and a laugh, saying that it’s no big deal. Her vehicle is large enough to hold all six of them comfortably, but Hinata has a feeling that the ride will be unbearable just because of her erratic driving. He’s proved correct in the next two hours. Tsukishima almost becomes car sick at one point, which makes Tanaka laugh so hard he almost throws up himself.

 

Once they get into the city, it’s all Hinata can do to restrain himself and not bolt off from his group of friends. The first place they go to is the mall, where Tsukishima drags them to a music store that’s adjoined with an electronics shop. He hadn’t been lying after all; there are so many different headsets that Hinata’s eyes grow as wide as saucers as he struggles to take them all in. Yamaguchi and Tsukishima latch onto an employee, who apparently goes on to explain the ups and downs of various models to the two of them.

 

While Tsukishima speaks to the employee, the rest of their group splits off and wanders through the store. Hinata drags Kageyama over to a display with special mouses and keyboards designed for gaming, and he takes a couple of pictures to send to Kenma. Kageyama doesn’t like that, and in turn, drags Hinata over to television monitors that boast their apparent ability to broadcast regular TV shows in 3D. They try on a pair of the special glasses that come with it, watching an American football game. Kageyama rips them off after a minute and says that it seems better for headaches than for entertainment. Hinata says that football is lame and they finally find something they can agree on.

 

After Tsukishima buys his headphones, Nishinoya tells them about a great place about five minutes away from the mall that has amazing food. It’s nearing lunch, and they’re all hungry, but they still bicker back and forth before deciding that it might be worth trying. Tsukishima openly wonders if it’s a buffet since Nishinoya had been the one to recommend it, and even Kageyama titters at that.

 

The walk is about fifteen minutes, rather than five. Tanaka phones Saeko while they slowly make their way to the place, following in Nishinoya’s wake. He tells her where they are and when he hangs up he informs them that his sister has temporarily dumped them at the mall so she can shop somewhere else. No one really minds.

 

They arrive by noon, and the heat has them sweltering. The air isn’t humid, luckily enough, but the sun burns. The place isn’t a buffet, but it is a pretty fancy looking restaurant; it clearly has a Western influence, judging by the exterior design. They argue outside about whether or not they can afford it even though the cool air inside beckons them.

 

“Did you forget that the rest of us are commoners?” Tsukishima’s snide comment, whispered under his breath, doesn’t fly by Nishinoya who turns to him, clearly angry.

 

“You’re not a commoner,” Hinata pipes up before Nishinoya can pounce. “You just bought two thousand yen headphones,” He points out. Nishinoya points at him wildly.

 

“That’s right! You just bought crazy-expensive headphones that’ll probably last you a year before you get bored of them!” He shouts, drawing the attention of an old couple walking by. He has little shame, though, and doesn’t seem to notice how loud he’s being.

 

“Quiet down already, bird-brain. I just spent all my money on them, so don’t complain,” He rolls his eyes. “Besides, who’s to say that the rest of us can afford it, huh? Hinata probably only brought enough money for ice cream.”

 

“I’ll pay!” Nishinoya puts his hands on his hips, apparently proud. “Isn’t it obvious that I’d pay for my precious under classmates to have a wonderful lunch?!”

 

“Oooh!” Hinata beams, skipping closer. “You really are the best!” He sticks his tongue out at Kageyama, who snarls in response. “Unlike some people,” He teases.

 

“Hey! You can pay for your own damn lunch. Why would I do that, anyways? You’re _older_ than me,” He says, flatly.

 

“Yeah, but you’re taller and…” Hinata trips over his words, trying to avoid voicing what everyone had been thinking the second the two had started arguing. “You’re taller and it’s only a couple months’ difference! Geez! Get over yourself, stupid!”

 

Ultimately, they decide to head on in, Hinata’s vitality restored with Nishinoya’s offer. It’s not really a surprise that he ends up winning the argument. It also helps that the American owner comes out and tells them to come inside and enjoy themselves or leave the property.

 

Once inside, they get settled in a booth that is shockingly large enough to fit all of them. Hinata sits beside Nishinoya, and they bump elbows and share the same breath. Their giggles make Kageyama twitch. Tsukishima leans over and whispers to him, feeling unfortunate enough to be sat beside the setter.

 

“It looks like they’re flirting,” He says, laughter in his breath. “You jealous ye— ouch! Yamaguchi, what was that for?” Tsukishima’s taunt is thrown off when Yamaguchi, on his other side, elbows him in the ribs. Hinata glances up at the shout, catching Kageyama’s gaze from across the table.

 

“What are you getting, Kageyama?”

 

“Oh? Huh. Ah, probably this, uh… the dumplings, and maybe the steak…” Kageyama stutters distractedly, flipping open his menu and blurting out the first thing that he sees.

 

“Both?!” Hinata squirms beside Nishinoya, looking at everyone else’s menus but his own. “I didn’t know you had such a big appetite! Bigger than Noya’s, maybe,” He suggests, smiling.

 

“No, uh. Just one. Just the steak,” He mumbles, embarrassed.

 

Nishinoya can’t help but butt in. “Oh? The steak?! Me too! Hinata, what about you?” He asks, effectively distracting them.

 

Everyone is so loud and so noisy that when the server comes along to take their order, they don’t realize it until Tsukishima snaps at them to all shut up. They all rattle off their favored dishes and Nishinoya makes sure to buy an abundance of appetizers, too.

 

Yamaguchi looks terribly concerned, and tries to point out the fact that it’s only _lunch_ , not dinner, and that they’ll be weighed down by all of the food, but Nishinoya just shoots him a perplexed look. They all marvel over Nishinoya’s vicious appetite as their orders are taken and the waiter leaves. Tsukishima says that something is wrong with the second year, and Nishinoya orders Tanaka to kick him since his legs are too short to reach underneath the table. Tanaka obliges him.

 

They continue on like that throughout their lunch, bickering and teasing each other, eating happily and discussing several things. Kageyama eventually turns his attention to Hinata and they have an intense conversation about television monitors across the table, which by the end of Tsukishima reveals that he has a flat screen in his bedroom. Hinata radiates jealousy and Kageyama tells him he’s too much, and that even his parents don’t own something so excessive.

 

Nishinoya _does_ cover Hinata’s bill by the end of their excursion, and he also asks if anyone else needs help paying. He plays it off as being responsible since he’s older than everyone but Tanaka, but they all know he has enough to spare if need be. Everyone else is able to pay up and toss their money in until the bill and the tip is fully covered, though. In the end, it turns out that it isn’t all that expensive for singular meals, but all together, the total is a bit ridiculous.

 

The owner waves at them from the back as they leave, thanking them for their visit. They all reply with their own thanks in turn, even Tsukishima, who admits that the food was really tasty. Hinata scoops up a pile of mints from the counter, too, handing them out to everyone as they walk down the street, heading back to the mall. It’s a Western custom, Hinata points out, but Kageyama just shrugs and says he’s happy to get candy after a meal. Tanaka loudly agrees that whether or not it’s Western, it’s nice.

 

They hurry back inside the mall to escape the high sun, sighing with relief as the cool breeze from the air conditioner hits them. After that, their pace crumbles down to a meanderingly slow one, to which even Hinata seems to enjoy. They’re all full, warm and content, and aren’t too picky with where they go from there.

 

Hinata doesn’t stay complacent for long, though. He bounces on his feet and grows excited as they pick their way through various shops. He buys a trinket here and there, for his sister and his mother, but eventually seems too excited to stay in one place.

 

Kageyama loses track of him for a second as he examines a fancy notebook. When he turns back around to point it out to Hinata, though, he finds that his friend is gone. He scans the crowd inside and outside the shop, quickly spotting Tanaka, Tsukishima, Yamaguchi and Nishinoya, but is unable to catch sight of Hinata.

 

“Hey,” He says slowly, drawing the attention of Nishinoya, who shuffles over with a nod. “Where’s Hinata?”

 

“Huh? Shouyou? He’s…” Nishinoya glances around, clearly expecting to find Hinata immediately. When he doesn’t, he seems to perk up a bit, the relaxed air around him wavering. “What the hell? He was just here a second ago, too…”

 

“Did you lose—” Tsukishima starts.

 

“ _Our_ spiker?” Yamaguchi pipes up, effectively interrupting Tsukishima.

 

“Yeah,” Kageyama murmurs vaguely, looking around. He still can’t see him. Hinata is easy enough to find in the worst of crowds, simply because his hair is so ridiculously outstanding, but that bright orange is nowhere to be seen. “Shit. Where’d he run off to now?”

 

“He has a phone, doesn’t he?” Tanaka asks, wandering over, apparently having gotten the gist of the problem. “If he’s gone for too long, just text him. You have his number, don’t’cha?”

 

“Uh… yeah, but…” Kageyama scratches at his cheek, suddenly feeling awkward.

 

The situation isn’t particularly serious. Hinata is apt to wander off, and Nishinoya had already done as much earlier, leaving them all confused until he’d returned with ice cream. In reality, Hinata was like to return in the same manner, but it still bothered Kageyama, for different reasons.

 

His anxiety isn’t unfounded and he knows it, but no one else does. Hinata had explained the situation to Sugawara, changed his locks, and had seemingly forgotten all about it, but Kageyama wasn’t so quick to cool. It still bothered him, even now, and made him naturally suspicious of people around Hinata, and now that the little spiker had run off, well…

 

“Chill,” Tanaka says, bringing Kageyama back from his wandering thoughts. “He’ll probably run back in. If he doesn’t, just call him and tell him to come back to this store. We can wait,” He shrugs.

 

“Sure. Um…” Kageyama sighs. “It’s just that I’m a bit worried. He’s kind of dopey, and won’t realize it if he’s gone for a while, and he doesn’t check his phone that often, so… well, whatever, you’re right,” He murmurs, trailing off.

 

Everyone goes back to examining the contents of the shop, satisfied, but Kageyama can’t shake his nerves. Nishinoya stands alongside him, apparently just as worried.

 

“Hmm,” He hums, cracking his knuckles casually, clearly vexed. Kageyama wonders if his tension has rubbed off on the libero. “Y’know, if you’re so worried, you can go look for him. I can come with you, or… I can just go myself,” He offers.

 

“No,” The setter says flatly, immediately regretting it. “No – I mean, I’ll go. I’m not that worried, it’s just that he’s a dumbass. I’d rather not have to go contact the lost child office and have to call him over the PA system,” Kageyama grumbles, walking off with a scowl. He ignores Nishinoya’s stifled laugh.

 

“Mkay. Don’t you get lost, either! You have my number, so text me when you find him!” He calls, voice a teasing lilt. Kageyama waves in response, stepping out of the small shop and into the bustling crowds, ignoring the voice in the back of his head that informs him that Nishinoya had sounded positively smug just then.

 

It’s not too bad from then on and Kageyama keeps his eyes peeled for Hinata’s hair, distinct as it is. With people surrounding every side of him, though, the air quickly grows stifled and hot. He feels too warm and too nervous, and he has a feeling that he’s kind of conspicuous with the way he’s looking around.

 

So conspicuous that an older woman taking care of her young child stops him as he wanders by and asks him if he’s looking for something. He doesn’t know what to say, and asks her if she’s seen someone with bright, orange hair. Her response jostles him from his panicked state to an excited one.

 

“Someone short?” She smiles, questioning. Kageyama nods frantically. “I saw him over by that cute little ice cream parlor down that side, over there, past the food court,” She says, pointing the way Kageyama had come.

 

“Thank you!” Kageyama bows in a hurry and speeds through the crowds, pushing past people when appropriate. He feels his worry sizzle into a low, hot sort of anger. Hinata is so _stupid_. A maddening impatience makes him run, and he doesn’t know why he’s so worried or why Hinata thought leaving like that was _okay_ , but at least he knows where to look, now.

 

He comes upon Hinata in the ice cream shop, but he isn’t alone.

 

Kageyama’s breath stills in his lungs as he tries to soak the situation in, holding back a shout. Hinata is with a middle-aged man; he’s blonde, tall, muscled, and sits with the tiny ball of sunshine at one of the marbled table-tops inside the store.

 

There’s laughter in their breath, and Hinata seems to be as close to him as any one of his classmates, but Kageyama has never seen this man before. He’s too far away to hear what they’re saying, too cold to call out, too scared to make a presumption that he can’t pull back.

 

Hinata has a vanilla ice cream cone in his hands – he laps languidly at the thing, sucking at the cream with a pleasant ease. It isn’t melting from the heat inside the store, but it drips steadily across Hinata’s knuckles anyway, heated up from his hand and the attention he’s lavishing on it.

 

The man reaches out to pat Hinata’s free hand, which rests on top of the table. Something in Kageyama’s mind snaps him out of his spell, and he storms forward, a few quick and cruel words coming to the tip of his tongue.

 

“Hinata!” His shout boasts well, and the little spiker’s head swivels around at the sound of his name. The man turns to look at him, too. Kageyama feels his confidence bluster, burn, and finally die out when he recognizes the look on Hinata’s face to be dismay. “What the hell are you doing?”

 

“Me?” Hinata looks from the man across from him then back to Kageyama. The man’s expression is stiff, frozen in a half smile. “Huh? I just left to get some ice cream, and…”

 

“Who the hell is this?” Kageyama points. It’s rude, it’s childish, and he doesn’t care. “Are you seriously chatting up a little kid?” He directs his words to the man, now. “Who the fuck are you?”

 

Hinata gasps. “Kageyama! Don’t be so rude! He’s—”

 

“Well? Are you trying to flirt with him, or something? Don’t you think it’s creepy for an old man like you to—”

 

“Calm down, calm down!” The man seems to break free from his shock. “Sit down, if you must. I’ve no idea as to why you’re so upset with me, but I’m assuming that Hinata here,” He gestures to the spiker, who looks mortified. “Is your close friend? I work here. We were simply chatting,” He speaks slowly, as if Kageyama is too stupid to keep up with a normal pace.

 

“You _work_ here?” Kageyama whispers, looking him up and down. He realizes that he has an apron and a hat on, and that he and Hinata are the only two in the store. He wants to understand, but he can’t. “How… why?” He looks to Hinata for explanation.

 

He looks embarrassed, enough so that Kageyama has enough sense to feel ashamed of his reactionary anger. “I just wandered by. Since there was no one in the store, I didn’t know if it was open or not, so,” He gestures awkwardly. “He told me to come in and we were just chatting and he gave me free ice cream. I mentioned… um, volleyball, and apparently this is where Nishinoya stopped by, earlier, so… plus, also, it’s…”

 

“You’re so goddamn stupid,” Kageyama says, because he doesn’t know what else to say. “We’re leaving,” He turns his attention to the man, who is tight-lipped and seems unable to speak. “I’m not sorry for yelling at you, but I guess I was wrong,” His suspicions have not been cleared. It’s all too much of a coincidence. “C’mon, Hinata. _Now_.”

 

Thankfully, Hinata obeys him. He gets up and tosses an apology to the man, who looks pretty awkward by now. He gives a nod and Hinata bows. As soon as Hinata steps up beside him, Kageyama grabs him by his upper arm and pulls him away. He walks so fast that Hinata has to practically jog to keep up with him, short legs taking two steps for every one of Kageyama’s strides.

 

Hinata doesn’t say anything until they’re out of earshot and eyesight of the man; as soon as they are, he tries to tear himself free from Kageyama’s bruising grip. He stops dragging him along, and instead pushes him into a quiet corner so they can talk.

 

“Stop! Let go of me, already! What the hell is your—”

 

“Are you fucking retarded?” Kageyama spits, slamming Hinata against the wall. Their voices are low, but the violence draws a couple eyes their way. He makes sure to let go of Hinata after that, only just realizing his own venom, but he doesn’t let up on the verbal pressure. “You’re such a goddamn idiot that it hurts. Did you forget all about the letters you received? Honestly, it was probably a coincidence, but you can’t just hope and pray that it is!”

 

“That hurt,” Hinata whimpers, rubbing at the spot where Kageyama had squeezed. There are tears in his eyes. He feels regret hit him like a tidal wave as Hinata sniffs and cowers, clearly upset. “That really hurt, Kageyama,” He complains.

 

“That… I’m sorry,” Kageyama blurts, undignified. “Holy shit, sorry. Are you okay? Your arm—” He reaches out to pull the fabric of his sleeve up to inspect, but Hinata flinches away. It makes his chest ache, and he withdraws his hand.

 

Hinata sniffs. “I… I didn’t think. I didn’t think when I stopped in the shop. You’re right. So just… just leave me alone?”

 

Kageyama pauses, and just for a second, there is hesitation and consideration in his expression. “No,” He decides. “I won’t just _leave you alone_.”

 

Hinata keeps his gaze tracked onto his shoes, but he shifts back, just a bit, and curls his loose fingers into fists, gritting his teeth. “So you think you can just sneak into my business like that, and blunder on where ever you like…?” His shoulders square up, tense.

 

“No. No, that isn’t what I want. That’s not what I _meant_. I just got angry because – you’re careless! You’re too much of an idiot to be wary of people. You’re too trusting, and those letters—”

 

“I stopped those letters!” Hinata huffs, finally looking at Kageyama. “I haven’t gotten another. It was just the one, just that first one, and then the flowers. Just that! So stop harping and going on about them. They stopped coming!”

 

“You don’t know that,” Kageyama defies, insistent. “You could get more. I’m serious about this, and I don’t get why you aren’t, too. Nobody just harasses you through letters for fun. They’re probably a stalker, and they might be watching you constantly and waiting for you to be alone!”

 

“You mean they might harass me, like you are now?”

 

Kageyama grasps at straws, desperate to dial down the seriousness of the situation. “I’m not. I didn’t mean to grab at you like that, I just wanted to get you away from that man as soon as possible,” He fumbles for excuses.

 

“Shut up! I already told you that Nishinoya stopped in there earlier, and then I did -- we’re both wearing Karasuno t-shirts, so he recognized that! He was just a friendly old man! You’re just paranoid!”

 

Kageyama bristles at that, offended. “I am not paranoid. I am _cautious_ and I actually think, unlike some thoughtless idiots!”

 

“It’s none of your business!” Hinata’s voice is raspy and dry, and Kageyama watches him lick his lips and swallow, wetting his throat, preparing himself. The look on his face isn’t particularly different, but the darkness in his eyes makes Kageyama feel like the sun has passed under a cloud. He goes numb from his fingertips to his toes when he recognizes the fire in Hinata’s eyes.

 

Hinata is angry, not scared.

 

“You just happened to steal that letter and read it. I never wanted you to know about it in the first place. Stop sticking your nose into places where it isn’t wanted!” Hinata’s body language boasts no confidence, despite the fists at his side, but the look in his eyes – Kageyama has never seen it like this before.

 

“I… Hinata, you—” He begins, going nowhere.

 

“I went to Sugawara and he _helped_ me. You just keep making me feel worse about it. I hate this. I hate you for this!” Hinata sucks in a sharp breath, and then positively bellows. “Leave me alone already!”

 

The squeak of shoes draw Kageyama and Hinata’s eyes to the side, where Nishinoya is standing, mouth open, eyes wide.

 

“Hinata?!” The cry shatters the palpable tension in the air, and Hinata’s furious energy seems to drain from him, all in an instant. It leaves Kageyama feeling cold.

 

It’s not long after Nishinoya’s disbelieving little shout that the rest of their friends arrive, Tanaka screeching to a sudden halt at the sight of them pressed close. Kageyama pulls back, suddenly terribly conscious of the fact that they’d practically been at each other’s throats.

 

“How much did you hear?” Kageyama manages, voice strained. For some reason, the thought of them all knowing about Hinata’s situation makes his throat feel tight.

 

“We heard enough,” Tsukishima snaps, trailing behind Tanaka with a lazy, almost calm gait. “You two were practically screaming. I think it _echoed_ ,” He says, irritation marked up and down from his voice to the disdainful curl of his lips. “Could you stop harassing our spiker now, please?”

 

“Wait, wait, wait!” Hinata whimpers. “It’s not like it seems! What did—“

 

“What did you hear?” Kageyama repeats himself, standing up at his full height. He tries to be intimidating, but it’s lost on Nishinoya, who blunders on, eyes looking through Kageyama to Hinata, who cowers at his side.

 

“Not much,” Nishinoya says. “Just Shouyou yelling. Pretty impressive. We heard you about a mile away. Uh,” He glances from Kageyama to Hinata, stepping forward slowly, as if walking on thin ice. “You weren’t about to fist-fight again, were you?”

 

“You know, it’s unattractive for couples to fight in public. It’s an obvious sign that a relationship’s soured,” Tsukishima drawls. “Especially when it’s ab— ouch !” Tanaka slaps Tsukishima on his back, hard, as he walks by him.

 

“Yep! No fighting in public, you guys,” Tanaka says, boisterous as always. “Or in private, for that matter.” His half-smile slips, and he seems to tense up, surveying the two of them cautiously. “I’m not joking, though. What was all of that about?”

 

“Nothing!” Hinata scrambles from where he’d melded against the wall, pushing past Kageyama without a second glance. “We weren’t really fighting! It was just a little argument,” He insists.

 

“I think that’s what fighting is,” Yamaguchi mutters weakly, clinging to Tsukishima’s arm. “Hinata… that was scary. You…” He trails off, hesitant to bring the severity of the situation up. Nishinoya continues on, apparently unaware of the tension radiating from everyone.

 

“You sounded freakin’ _mad_ , Hinata!” He sounds impressed, despite the heavy aura radiating off the two of them. Tanaka interrupts him, and Kageyama remembers how he’d pulled them apart when they fought physically, and thinks that the mood surrounding him is the same now as it was then.

 

“I won’t lie. We heard what you guys were talking about. I don’t think here is best, but…” He looks between the setter and the spiker, shaking his head. “We’ll talk about it later. I’m trusting that you’re not going to kill each other, though?”

 

Kageyama doesn’t want to press the issue, and if he can get away with not explaining his and Hinata’s fight at least for a little while longer, then he’s fine with pretending to make amends. Or rather, he’s fine with ignoring the problem and pushing it aside. This is the last thing he wants to deal with right now.

 

“Honestly. Don’t bicker like that! If Daichi were here, you guys’d be dead by now,” Nishinoya laughs, trying to cut through the tension in the air. “Are you guys okay for now?”

 

“Of course,” Kageyama blurts, too quickly. He snatches a sidelong glance at Hinata, who doesn’t seem like to protest him. “We’re good. All good. Right?”

 

“Huh? Uh, y-yeah! We’ve settled it! We can discuss more, later, maybe, probably…?” Hinata looks back at Kageyama, as if asking for approval. Kageyama gives it to him with a nod and a shaky attempt at confidence. No one buys their feeble attempts at reconciliation, but since they’ve come to grips with themselves and have calmed down, no one is overly eager to push them on it, either. Noya helps, jumping up and declaring them friends again, as if they’d stopped somewhere along the way. Hinata and he separate slowly and awkwardly, and they all set off again. Kageyama can feel Tanaka’s eyes boring holes into the back of his head.

 

The mood that hangs over them after that isn’t a particularly good one, but they still manage to make the most of the rest of their day off. The mall bustles with people and they discover an event on the third floor – there’s special drink and food from different cultures, and some eccentric dancing going on. It’s a distraction from themselves, something that they desperately need. They stay there for an hour or two and enjoy themselves, and then leave the mall.

 

Saeko picks them off and drops them off at a movie theatre. None of them are particularly hungry for dinner after their massive lunch, so they sate themselves with popcorn and fizzy drinks. The movie they watch is explicit – there’s a lot of violence and even more psychological horror. Hinata sits in between Tanaka and Nishinoya and clings to the both of them, which seems to endlessly amuse Tanaka.

 

By the end of the film, it’s late in the evening. Saeko drives by and picks them up and drops them off at their respective bus stops. She offers to drive Hinata home if he doesn’t mind waiting while she drops Nishinoya and Tanaka off at her house, but Hinata politely declines, even when she insists. When Nishinoya asks why, she just says that it’s dangerous for short people to wander around late at night, and gives Nishinoya a look in the rear view mirror. He ignores her.

 

Kageyama, Tsukishima, Yamaguchi and Hinata are dropped off at the bus stop they’d been to in the morning. Hinata slides out and they all give their goodbyes and thanks to Saeko, and watch the van drive away. Tsukishima and Yamaguchi nod to Kageyama and Hinata and walk off, leaving the two alone again. For once, they keep their goodbyes amiable, Tsukishima having run out of steam – as well as insults – after spending the entire day with them.

 

Hinata fiddles with his bike lock, the same way he had in the morning. Again, Kageyama grows frustrated watching him, so he takes over and pops the lock open with the key that Hinata passes to him. There’s a moment where their hands brush, touch fleeting but warm. Their eyes lock, but the stirring of understanding that begins to form between them fades away as quickly as it had come, and Hinata takes back the bike lock with a weak smile.

 

“Thanks,” Hinata murmurs, and then falls silent. He seems thoughtful, which makes Kageyama nervous. He doesn’t know how to handle himself around Hinata now. This is new territory for both of them – while Hinata has always been just as loud and just as stubborn as Kageyama, he’d never been half as threatening. “Listen, about before…”

 

“Don’t,” He stops him there. “I overreacted, I know that much. I shouldn’t’ve grabbed at you like that. I just can’t stand the thought of some weirdo pervert doing something to you. I mean,” He rushes to correct himself. “It would mess up the whole team dynamic and we’d be unable to do that quick, and, go to the nationals and stuff, so yeah,” He sighs.

 

“Okay,” The pressure on Kageyama’s chest tightens before it releases, the smile on Hinata’s face relaxing him. “We’re already going to nationals, stupid! But I get you, Kageyama, don’t worry about it. It’s not an issue. Not anymore.”

 

“Okay,” Kageyama nods, and then shuffles from foot to foot. “So, um. Will you be alright walking home alone? Er, biking home, alone?”

 

“Yeah! I do it all the time. I’ll see you on Monday!” He waves, already hopping on his bike. For once, all Kageyama does is watch, feeling hopelessly lonely for some reason.

 

“Yeah. Have a safe trip.” He says, speaking to Hinata’s retreating back, unable to stop him. They’ve "made up", and Kageyama doesn’t doubt his own suspicions, so why does he still feel like such a fuck up?


	3. Fatality

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Big thank you to everyone who posted a comment: I've been pretty busy and haven't had time to respond, but I have seen them, and they ARE appreciated VERY much! Thank you!

Hinata flies down dark city streets, bicycle tires straining with his effort, pedals whizzing. He can scarce breathe for his speed, the wind whipping his hair and his clothing around, the bite of the cold that dusk brought forcing fresh air into his lungs.

 

The bike squeals with strain as he pulls the break handles, struggling to slow himself down as he turns a corner, but he realizes that it’s too late for that and he just speeds up as he leans into the turn, reckless. He speeds past a car and hears a honk, but by the time he realizes the danger he’d just escaped he’s half a mile away.

 

He slows his efforts as he approaches his house, and he heaves, exhausted. The wind had done its job and dried the tears welling up in his eyes, and the force he’d exuded biking had forced the tension from his muscles. It’s all he can do to slide off his bike and lock it up, pulling his house keys from his pocket with a sigh, approaching the door cautiously. The lights are out and the house is dark – his mother is gone, off to a fancy dinner with her friends. Natsu is with the babysitter, and Hinata is alone. It's dark, so he uses his muscle memory and hops up the steps to his door, unlocking it and stepping half way inside before remembering to check the mail.

 

He flips open the rusty, metal box and digs around inside without looking, grabbing the contents and carelessly tucking them under his arm as he pushes his way inside his house, slamming the door open. It’s probably all junk mail, so he just throws it onto the kitchen counter and stumbles back to the door to lock it and turn some of the outside lights on for when his mom gets home.

 

He yawns, long and loud, pulling off his sweater and tossing it over a chair in the living room. His feet totally ache from walking around all day and his head is throbbing from the crying he’d done on his way home, but he’s still kind of hungry, so he heads into the kitchen for a snack.

 

Set up with cheese and crackers, Hinata shuts off the kitchen light and starts upstairs, but stops short, almost dropping his plate. He knows he’s forgetting something, but he can’t remember what – a drink, maybe, some fizzy orange soda. He wanders back into the kitchen, switching the light back on as he goes, setting his plate down on the table.

 

His eyes travel aimlessly to the pile of junk mail, where an ornate envelope sits.

 

Hinata’s skin crawls. The clock ticks on, rhythmic and soothing in its familiar drone, but distant. He looks around warily, expecting his mother to come home any second. He feels strangely guilty, like the letter is his own, and not an unexpected and unwanted intrusion in his life.

 

His heart thunders in his chest as he picks up the thing. There’s something written on the front – he thinks it says Hinata, but the letters look foreign to him, his panic blinding. The envelope is a creamy white, and the pattern printed across it shines in the dim light of the kitchen. It looks almost like scars, with raised white lines swirling in extravagant curls and loops. He fixates on that, and not on what waits for him inside.

 

Hinata tries to be careful when opening it, but once again, his blunt fingers can do little more than scrabble useless at the glued down edge. He rips the top open unceremoniously, fury burning the pit of his belly. _How dare you_ , he wants to shout, but the house is empty and the windows are closed. The low whine building in his throat goes nowhere.

 

He tears it open, and thinks about continuing. It would feel great, after all, to spit in this persons face and throw their efforts into the wind and rip it to pieces without reading a single word. The curiosity eats at him, so it wins over his trepidation in the end, and he slides the neat square of paper from the torn envelope with careful but shaking fingers.

 

_To Shouyou,_

_I hope you had fun on your day out today. It pains me that I could not join you, as I would not have been able to stand seeing you so close to Kageyama again._

_Your clothing was specially chosen for me, was it not? Those shorts were amazing. I could not help but watch you for a little while. Were you hot? The sun was so bright today that it hurt my eyes. I’m sure you practically soaked it up. It’s almost your essence. When you sweat, you seem to gleam._

_It stuns me time and time again how absolutely beautiful you are, and I hope you know just how special you are to me. It hurts that you did not seem to enjoy the flowers I sent you. I found them in the trash. I suppose roses are not your type. I will do my best to find flowers that suit you. I suppose those were too romantic for us yet._

_I’m not worried. I’m sure we’ll continue to bond further. Just the thought of spending intimate time with you sends my heart racing, and I’m sure yours does too._

_Love, your breathless admirer,_

__

 

Hinata chokes back disgust, head spinning. He crumples up the paper, throwing it against the wall. He feels sickened.

 

Vision blurring with tears, he stumbles back to the doorway and checks the locks again, setting the deadbolt and the chain. His anger has fizzled out and all he can do is shake as he digs through his bag for his phone – _I need Sugawara_ , he thinks, half-crazed. He realizes that Sugawara was one of the ones that hadn’t been on the outing with them, though, and swallows down a sob.

 

_Kageyama._

 

He punches in his number before he remembers their fight, and what he’d said. _Keep your nose out of my business_ , wasn’t that it? But now Hinata is home alone and he doesn’t know who to trust or how to deal with this, so all he can really do is mop up his tears and snotty, running nose with his shirt as he slides down the wall.

 

He’s too proud to call Kageyama and too scared to call Sugawara. He stays on the floor and curls into himself, hating this. It’s a joke, it’s got to be, because there’s no way someone would stalk Hinata Shouyou if they were in their right mind – which they probably aren’t, either way. If this is a prank, he doesn’t know, but if it is it’s a cruel one that has him crying before he can stop it.

 

After a long cry, Hinata crawls over to the crumpled letter and gathers it as well as the envelope up, salvaging what he can. He goes up to his room and deposits it underneath his bed alongside the key to his locker and heads into his bathroom for a hot shower. It might not be the smartest course of action considering that he’s home alone, but he doesn’t care about being careful anymore. He can hardly think straight.

 

After that, he’s reminded that he’s still hungry when his stomach growls. He forces himself back down into the kitchen, straightening out the junk mail as he goes, grabbing his plate of stale cheese and crackers, sitting in front of the television with blank, unseeing eyes. At least he can manage a laugh or two when his favorite cartoon comes on. It’s a repeat, but it’s warm and familiar here, sitting on the couch in the dark with a cocoon of blankets surrounding him. It doesn’t take long for him to grow sleepy there.

 

The letter isn’t that big of a deal, he thinks, lying to himself, but he heads to bed hoping to wake up and find a text from Kageyama saying _I got you good, huh?_ despite that.

 

He doesn’t wake up to a text from Kageyama, but he does wake up to his angry mother who is busy in the kitchen, cooking up a furious breakfast. She begins to scold him as soon as he enters her field of vision, and he snaps his mouth shut mid-yawn, horrified.

 

“Why did you lock the door like that last night? I nearly had a heart attack! I swore I was locked out for good. You’re lucky you forgot the back door,” She says, and his heart skips a beat. Stupid. He is so stupid that it hurts. They so often leave the doors unlocked. She notices the petrified look on his face, and all her stern anger bubbles melts away to worry.

 

“Did something spook you, honey? It’s okay. I got inside fine, so things are all good, okay? Sit down. We’re going to have a big Sunday breakfast. Oh, and Natsu slept over at the babysitter’s. She’ll be staying there until tonight. How about we…”

 

Hinata stops listening to her somewhere along the way, relief and exhaustion pulling him this way and that. He’s suddenly painfully glad that she’s home and that today he can relax and zone out. Thinking hurts. Thinking about the letter hurts, thinking about what he’s supposed to do hurts, and thinking about facing Kageyama hurts.

 

Monday hurts.

 

Hinata reluctantly drags himself out of bed, because he knows that staying home and hiding won’t help him. There’s no immediate solution to his problem, but there’s nothing he can’t fix – that’s what he tells himself that morning, and it’s enough to get him moving.

 

But he’s barely an hour or two into his day before he realizes that it’s going to be awful. He sucks during practice, Kageyama tells him as much, while everyone else avoids looking into his eyes. A heady sort of shame overcomes him, and he gives up spectacularly after his tenth consecutive failure of a spike.

 

The entire team watches, speechless, as he hisses wordlessly in frustration and storms off to the benches. It’s not like him to just walk away from a game, and he never has before now, but he’s so discouraged that he can’t think to do anything else.

 

He doesn’t know what to do with himself after walking away, so he grabs his bottle of water so fiercely that he sprays himself, and then he’s not only pissed, but wet, too. He throws it against the wall, hard, and the thud echoes through the quiet gym. It bursts open upon impact and soaks the entire bench, splattering the wall and floor, too.

 

Sugawara is a step behind him, chasing after him even as he spins on his heel and rushes to the club room, now not only angry, but embarrassed too.

 

“Hinata! Stop for a second, and talk to us. What’s the matter?”

 

“No,” Is all he manages, a discourtesy that doesn’t put the vice-captain off, to Hinata’s chagrin. The other members titter in response behind them.

 

“We’re not angry with you, if th—“

 

“Leave me alone!” He turns around and yells, practically spitting straight into Sugawara’s face.

 

“Hey, Hinata…” Someone begins. It sounds like Asahi, but Hinata’s head is ringing. _When you sweat, you seem to gleam._ It’s one of them, but he doesn’t know who. Kageyama’s sneakers squeak as he begins toward them, but Hinata stops him in his tracks.

 

“Don’t,” He hisses, razor sharp, meeting Kageyama’s gaze across the court. It cuts a chill into everyone, and they share looks of astonishment with each other, falling silent. “Leave me _alone_.”

 

The gym seems to echo with his defiance, and the second he realizes what he’s done, he flushes with shame. The silence is deafening. He can feel every single person’s gaze on him, and it’s too much.

 

“I’m…” Hinata feels a whine clawing up his throat, and he swallows it down, snapping his head to the side. He can’t stand to look Kageyama, never mind Sugawara, in the eyes right now. “Sorry. I… I’m sorry. I’m fine,” He lies.

 

“Hinata,” Sugawara tilts his head and forces himself into Hinata’s view, and he almost loses it when he sees the worry etched into his face. “It’s okay. Just slow down for a minute. Let’s step outside and talk,” He says, and then turns to the rest of their team, who can do little but stand and watch as Sugawara takes over effortlessly. “We’ll be back. Practice continues like normal. Get to it!”

 

A hand on his shoulder is all it takes, and Hinata is guided outside the gym without another word. He keeps his head hung low and ignores the whispers that bubble up behind him, even as they’re cut short by Daichi’s venomous warning to keep going.

 

Outside, Sugawara takes him around to the corner of the building, avoiding the windows of the gym so they can’t be overheard. Hinata sits down in the dirt and struggles not to look away when his upper classmate crouches down in front of him and places his hands on his arms. His grip is warm, reaffirming, but it doesn’t stop Hinata’s heart from racing.

 

“You’re not in trouble, if that’s what you’re wondering right now. We all get a little hot-headed in there sometimes, and I know you’ve had a lot on your mind lately. Right now, I need you to tell me why you got so frustrated back there,” He speaks slowly, as if he’s not sure Hinata will understand him otherwise. “We can help. If you don’t want anyone else knowing, _I_ can help. But no one can help if you don’t tell us – me – what’s wrong,” Sugawara smiles, gentle, refreshing, and kind.

 

“I got…” Hinata fights the sickness in his stomach, a distinct tingling in the back of his throat that makes his skin crawl. “Another letter. I… I don’t know what to do,” He says, face hot. “I don’t know who it’s coming from. It’s a prank. But it’s not funny anymore, it never was, but I dunno know how to stop it!” The sickness boils up and over, and he grows frustrated all over again, hands curling into fists that come to slam against his knees.

 

Sugawara’s face twists. He looks serious again, in a different way this time. “Hinata. I really don’t like asking this, and I don’t doubt you, let me make that clear. Did you bring the letter?” His voice dips to a whisper, low and dangerous. Hinata’s hands flutter and he ends up wrapping them around himself, head slinking downward.

 

“Please let me see it,” Sugawara pleads – no, demands, with eyes that gleam passionately beneath his cool, relaxed expression, set in his smile and the light upturn to his brows. Hinata hasn’t seen Sugawara truly angry before, but he thinks this might be the beginning of it.

 

All at once, he trusts the setter again, remembering just how reliable he is, how helpful he was when Hinata went to him. He opens his mouth to reply, to tell him everything – every scant detail, whether or not it’s important, but before either one of them can say anything, the sound of footsteps draw their eyes toward the gym door.

 

Daichi walks toward them with a cautious gait, as if approaching two startled animals. The atmosphere around them is serious enough even for him to take care, and he steps lightly, as if scared to set Hinata off.

 

“I don’t want to intrude, Hinata. But that was…” He seems to struggle with his words for a second. “Not great. What you did,” He sighs, shakes his head, disappointed. It cuts Hinata. “But Sugawara informed me of what happened the other day, and—“

 

“And I told you to keep your nose out of it,” Sugawara says, growing sulky. “It was just captain and vice-captain talk, honestly,” He turns back to Hinata with a tittering sigh. “We talk about everyone on the team. Daichi is worried about you – we all are… but he doesn’t know much,” Sugawara adds, catching the panic as it drifts across Hinata’s face. “Not everything. That’s up to you to tell him,” He affirms, gentle as always.

 

“No pressure,” Daichi says, waving a hand. “I mean that. You can tell us what you want. Though…” He and Sugawara share a look, and then they both turn to Hinata. It’s a subtle move, but it puts on the pressure before he even speaks, and Hinata averts his gaze.

 

“If you think it’s going to regularly effect your performance while in practice, and even in nationals, well – we both think you’re obligated. To say something, to fix it. We’ll do whatever we can. We’re not just teammates. We’re friends,” Daichi states firmly, leaving no room for argument.

 

Sugawara pats Hinata’s knees, standing up with a smile, waving his arm around the area surrounding the gym. “This is a safe place, and we want to keep it that way. If you’re getting… uh, pranked, and it’s so upsetting that you feel the need to scream at us –” Hinata grimaces, cataloguing that in the back of his mind. “Then I think it’s serious enough for you to tell us. I know how you think, so trust me when I say that we aren’t going to judge you over those notes. That’s what it was, right?” He asks, tilting his head, gaze resting someplace over Hinata’s shoulder, a very polite and very Sugawara thing to do.

 

Hinata gulps, licking his lips. He’s nervous. It’s in the tingling of his toes, the electric thump of blood behind his eyelids. He stands up wordlessly and begins toward the club room. Neither of them take well to what they perceive as a rejection, and Daichi grows fierce.

 

“Listen to us. We’re not here to bully you, w—”

 

“Follow me,” Hinata says. They share a look behind his back and then traipse after him.

 

Inside the club room, Hinata goes to his bag. It’s hung up in the usual spot, tucked neatly beside Kageyama’s. He pulls it off the hook and unzips the top, digging through with some effort, struggling to find the scrap of paper he’d thrown into the bottom last night after weighing his options. He knows he’s found it without looking because the soft, velvety material that makes up the envelope is too distinct to miss.

 

He hands it over to Sugawara, who stares at the torn mess, clearly confused. “This is…?” He begins, but Hinata just shuffles from foot to foot while digging into his bag again and hands him the letter, next, without meeting his eyes.

 

Sugawara takes the scrunched up square of paper, unfolding it with a delicate sort of ease. Daichi stands off to the side, and the vice-captain quietly applauds his self-restraint. He’s practically vibrating with tension, and Sugawara is suddenly glad he doesn’t have to wait to see it, since Hinata has handed it to him directly. Both of them have been waiting for this since Hinata had first come to Sugawara.

 

Trying not to lay the suspense on too thick, Sugawara begins to read. It sounds almost normal, at first, if not overly affectionate, but the words are too precise and too direct for him to misunderstand what the meaning behind them is.

 

A vague sort of nausea makes him scrunch his nose up in distaste, but he stops when he realizes how that could be perceived by Hinata – he glances over at the first-year, who isn’t even looking in his direction. He allows himself a moment of loathing before reading it again, and again. He has to read it multiple times before he hands it over to Daichi, who has just begun to tap his foot in impatience.

 

Daichi goes from being disgruntled to furious in seconds flat. He doesn’t waste any time in coming to a conclusion, and he turns to Sugawara with a little shake of his head. Hinata isn’t looking their way, can’t even seem to look at their shoes for all of his shame, so they nod to each other and communicate silently before approaching the boy, as scared as he is.

 

“When did you get this?” Sugawara tries to sound as gentle as possible, but it probably inflames Hinata even more, because he curls inward and wraps his arms around himself. It’s a habit that Sugawara has begun to notice more and more, a clear sign of insecurity that has grown exponentially in the past month.

 

“Saturday,” He says. “After the six of us went out. Ennoshita couldn’t. It was just second and first-years from our team,” He speaks so softly that the two of them have to strain to hear him. It’s uncharacteristic, and it’s unnerving.

 

“I… I see,” Sugawara says, uneasy. He flicks his attention over to Daichi, who seems intent on boring holes into Hinata’s downturned head. He scowls openly and jerks his head, since the spiker isn’t looking their way, trying to get some more moral support from the captain. This is absolutely the worst time for either of them to clam up – if they can at least convince Hinata that the letter isn’t serious, then they can deal with it in private if they have to, which it looks like they will.

 

“This is most likely a prank,” Sugawara says, as slowly as possible. Daichi doesn’t make any movements to interrupt him, so he keeps going, assuming they’ve silently agreed on a battle plan. “It sounds to me like this person has to be someone you went out wit—” He tries, and Daichi’s head swivels around to him so sharply that he chokes off whatever else he was going to say. “With. Someone you’ve spent time with. That you know,” He tries.

 

“Yes. This is a joke.” Daichi’s voice is firm, but he isn’t any good at hiding how he feels. The anger beneath his stiff, unmoving expression is obvious, and Hinata glances up at him and positively cowers when he sees it. Sugawara steps up beside him and pinches his arm behind his back, where Hinata can’t see.

 

“Yep! It’s just a joke. As I was saying, it sounds like it’s written from the perspective of someone you were with. It’s not fair to pin the blame on any single student, though, so,” He sighs, waving a hand to get Hinata’s attention. “Hey! Don’t look so sad, okay? We’ll deal with this. We can ask ev—”

 

“No,” Hinata blurts, so loudly and so fiercely that Sugawara is taken aback. “You can’t tell them. You can’t tell _anyone_. If… if this got out, then I’d _die_ ,” He sniffs, on the brink of tears.

 

“Hinata,” Sugawara reprimands him gently. “This is what they _want_. They probably wanted to freak you out, play a game with you, and see your reactions. I can’t say if it’s malicious or not, but it probably isn’t?” He hates himself for sounding unsure, and Daichi gives him a nod that bolsters his confidence.

 

“This is why I think it’s… well, unfortunately, someone on the team.” Daichi’s shoulders square up at that, but he doesn’t say anything. “Can I keep this?” Sugawara asks, gesturing to the letter and the envelope. “I can keep it safe for you. No one else will see it unless you want them to, I promise,” He says. “And we won’t tell the team members what it’s _about_ , if we do discuss it. Is that okay?”

 

“I…” Hinata seems to pop. His shoulders slump, and he shakes, rubbing his eyes red. He hasn’t cried, something that both Daichi and Sugawara are silently grateful for, but it does seem like this whole thing has taken a massive toll on him. Sugawara gently nudges Daichi, who seems to startle from his daze.

 

“I think you should change and get ready for class now, Hinata. Leave cleaning up to us. This prank,” He says, flapping the letter around angrily. “Ends now. I won’t stand for this. Whatever fun it was done in, it’s over.”

 

“Th-thank you, Daichi, Sugawara…” Hinata hiccups, smothering his mouth with a hand. Sugawara thinks, _here come the tears_ , but the first-year just holds himself still for a second until the tremble in his shoulders subside, and he lets out a long breath. “I didn’t know what to do. I thought… I thought you’d laugh. Thank you very much,” He says.

 

“It’s…” Sugawara is impressed. “No problem. Trust us, here!” He smiles, feeling comfortable enough now to reach over and pat Hinata’s head, ruffling his hair. “We’ve got this! Your big seniors are here to help! And, well, the rest of the team, too. We’ll get this sorted out,” He says, and Hinata brightens up immediately.

 

“Okay,” He rubs at his dry eyes again. They look red, but he hasn’t spilled a tear yet. “So… I’ll go now. You can keep that. Just… I’ll trust you not to show anyone, and, yeah… thanks again, you two…”

 

“Go on, now. Don’t worry about apologizing to the rest of the team.” Daichi sends Hinata off with a firm pat to his arm, a kind gesture. He bows, stutters out more thanks, and then grabs his bag, his change of clothes, and disappears.

 

Daichi and Sugawara stand in the silence of the club room for what feels like a solid minute, staring each other down. Sugawara finally snaps and groans loudly, rubbing his eyes and throwing himself down onto the bench. “Oh my god,” He says, finally. “The hell are we supposed to do?”

 

“You probably noticed it too, but…” Daichi relaxes beside him, shoulders slumped. Sugawara peeks through his fingers to level his gaze with his captain. “The envelope is strange.”

 

“Hmm,” Sugawara takes the offered paper and flips it around to examine it. “Yeah. It’s fancy. So?”

 

“Suga,” Daichi grows even tenser, and Sugawara thinks he’s like to snap, much like a rubber band. He hopes he doesn’t get hit as a result, because right now, it feels like he’s the one pulling at his strings. “Come on, now. You see it, right?”

 

Sugawara focuses on the thing. There’s nothing particularly unusual about it – the writing is in ink, the cursive a thick, smooth flow across the front. The writing is not familiar. There are no brands on the inside or the outside, which means it’s been produced singularly, and not in massive quantities like most envelopes, which only boasts its quality. There isn’t any writing on it other than Hinata’s name.

 

There aren’t any stamps.

 

“Oh,” He says, deflating. “This is…”

 

“There’s no address written on it.” Daichi looks away. “No return address, either. Normal, if you’re trying to hide your tracks. But there’s—“

 

“Hinata’s address is missing,” Sugawara breathes, mind racing.

 

“Yeah. If it was mailed, then it would have the recipient’s address written on it. But there’s nothing. “

 

“This…” Sugawara looks between the paper in his hands and Daichi, unwilling to voice it. “Wait… seriously? That means…”

 

“Yeah,” Daichi says, and his voice is hoarse, tight. Sugawara recognizes the defeat in his captain and panic surges through him.

 

“They dropped it off,” Sugawara whispers. “Right before he got home…?” He looks to Daichi for confirmation, and he gets it, can tell what his answer is by the far away look in his eyes. “I knew they didn’t have any time to mail it. I had a bad feeling. But this is just… I mean, we both agree that it’s _not_ actually a joke, right? The vibe I got from it was like…”

 

“It’s real.” Daichi nods, once, confirming his fears. “Which means that Hinata has a stalker.”

 

“This is too much,” Sugawara struggles not to bury his face in his hands, staring down at the envelope with disgust. “Are we _sure_ this isn’t a prank? Honestly, we can’t rule it out yet and start freaking out without getting some kind of proof. I want to protect Hinata, but that means that…”

 

“It’s probably in his best interest if we discreetly ask the team about it sometime,” Daichi says, nodding. “Don’t care what we have to do. We’re asking them about it. I’ll strap them to chairs and interrogate them one by one if I have to,” He snarls, and Sugawara realizes the seriousness of the situation with a painful finality that only comes with Daichi’s fierce anger.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Annnnnnd that's all she wrote. Quite literally, since this is everything I have so far. I know it's a very awkward, weird way to end a chapter, but this is all I got, buddies! Will continue in the revised and reworked version that will... hopefully come sometime after my other, ongoing fic, which I have yet to post. That one is a lot longer than even this, and much wider in terms of plot.


End file.
